And another day in our radicalized republic, where the Party of Lincoln became the Party of Trump, a GOP member indicated support for executing Democrats, a transphobic smear campaign began from the Right, and Hawley defended militia members after OKC bombing when he was 15 comes to a close:
“The real reason Senate Republicans oppose Biden's life-saving COVID relief proposal is they worry that it, plus his plan for jobs and infrastructure, may actually work -- thereby destroying their anti-government mythology and rewarding Democrats in 2022 and beyond.” — Robert Reich
Deaths
US: 435,452 (+4060)
World: 2,167,018 (+17,631)
Cases
US: 26,011,222 (+149,625)
World: 100,825,118 (+544,853)
Our Radicalized Republic. Can President Biden, or anyone else, overcome years of rising partisan hatred? For decades, researchers like Mason have watched as multiple trends — white Americans’ resentment of Black Americans, growth in inequality, how we feel about political opponents — pointed this country in a dangerous direction. Any one of these things, on their own, can destabilize democracies and lead to violence, experts told us. We are grappling with some half dozen. And now the country has come to a place where it’s much, much easier to throw a punch than to work things out. None of that is likely to change just because we have a new administration focused on unity. Underlying all the trends pushing Americans apart is a fundamental disagreement about who does and should have power. Should politicians strive to make a multicultural democracy devoted to solving social inequality? Or should they preserve a social hierarchy that allows white people (and in particular, white men) to hold disproportionate sway?...“There’s no way this goes away quietly,” Mason said....And that’s why political polarization is one of the most troubling trends. Not only has it grown by leaps and bounds since the 1980s, but it’s tied into everything else — race, inequality and even who you get a chance to vote for in a general election. How you feel about other Americans who don’t share your beliefs shapes how willing you are to embrace democracy...As the Republican Party cleaved closer and closer to its white base, the country’s first Black president ran on the Democratic Party’s ticket and the party became more and more progressive on issues like race and immigration. Republican politicians, on the other hand, had more and more of an incentive to embrace policies and rhetoric that privileged white, native-born Americans. That sorting, Mason said, allowed for the parties themselves to stand in for differing racial attitudes. “We’ve sort of created a situation in which rather than being racist against, like, Black Americans, you can just hate Democrats,” Mason said...It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to spin out where this kind of thinking leads us. Dehumanization has clear links to conflict and violence. “Seeing your opponents as subhuman is a way of saying they don’t warrant moral consideration and moral treatment,” Cassese said. “You’re more likely to see the opposition as evil rather than just wrong. You don’t just want to win, you want to exterminate your enemies.” And there are signs that a big chunk of Americans could be heading down that path. According to Mason and Kalmoe’s surveys, about 40 percent of Americans don’t just disagree with the opposing party’s views — they believe that the other party is evil...But what should be clear by now is that returning to pre-Trump political tactics won’t actually change much. Calls for bipartisanship won’t solve affective polarization. Making white Americans feel better won’t reduce racism. The same economic policies we’ve deployed for four decades are unlikely to reduce inequality. Holding a hard line in Congress won’t make Americans feel like politics works for them. Changing nothing about our tactics will only deepen extremism and further the threat of violence hanging over our heads. — Now go read the rest of the article.
Biden announces purchase of 200M vaccine doses. With those additional doses, Biden said there would be enough to fully vaccinate 300 million Americans -- nearly the entire US population -- by the end of summer or early fall.
In-person learning during the pandemic is possible with the right precautions, CDC researchers say.
Senate rejects GOP motion to declare Trump impeachment trial unconstitutional. The Senate voted down a motion brought by GOP Senator Rand Paul challenging the constitutionality of an impeachment trial against a former president. But just five Republicans joined all Democrats in opposing the measure, an indication that Democrats will not attract the 17 Republicans that would be needed to convict Mr. Trump at trial. -- Most Republicans are only for accountability from POC. Rich white men are never to be held accountable for anything. Not even inciting an insurrection. Once again, Mitch McConnell outplays the Democrats, and once again the country will suffer because of it.
McConnell: It Was Too Soon to Impeach Trump, Now It’s Too Late. The legal merits of this position are questionable at best: The Senate has historically impeached and convicted former officeholders, and even many conservative legal analysts agree that Trump’s departure does not rule out a trial. But what is perhaps most amazing about the Republican position is that they are the very party that refused to try him before he left.
Mitch McConnell does it again.
GOP Sen. Josh Hawley wrote a column in defense of militia members in the wake of Oklahoma City bombing when he was 15.
Trump establishes 'Office of the Former President' in Florida. — I yearn for the day when I don’t have to post anything about this man.
Marjorie Taylor Greene indicated support for executing prominent Democrats in 2018 and 2019 before running for Congress.
Supreme Court wipes out lower court rulings in Texas abortion battle. The Supreme Court handed a victory to advocates of abortion rights Monday, wiping off the books lower court rulings that had upheld a Texas order banning nearly all abortions in the state during the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden nominee Dr. Rachel Levine met with transphobic smear campaign. The choice of Levine, a pediatrician and most recently Pennsylvania's secretary of health who earned high marks for her role in leading the state's coronavirus response, was celebrated by a number of health groups, elected officials and LGBTQ advocacy organizations. However, some prominent figures on the right responded to the news by launching transphobic attacks against her...The attacks on Levine didn’t stop at insults about her appearance. -- Republicans and the Right really do attract the worst people humanity has to offer.
Biden holds first phone call with Russia's Putin. "President Biden made clear that the United States will act firmly in defense of its national interests in response to actions by Russia that harm us or our allies," the White House said.
Just 1 in 10 companies expect all employees to return to the office.
Florida makes bid to host Olympics if Tokyo backs out. -- Can’t make this shit up.
Surging global ice melt suggests sea level rise predictions are far too conservative.
Increases in air pollution are linked to an increased risk of irreversible sight loss, according to a new study. Researchers from University College London (UCL) found that even low exposure to air pollution across England, Scotland and Wales appears to impact the risk of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). AMD is the leading cause of irreversible blindness among people over 50 in high-income countries. AMD is linked to the loss of central vision -- needed for reading, performing fine detailed tasks and recognizing faces -- and the biggest risk factors for the disease are genetics, old age and smoking.
Agent Orange trial opens as woman seeks 'historic' ruling as first Vietnamese civilian victim. Fourteen multinationals went on trial on Monday accused of causing grievous harm to a French-Vietnamese woman by selling Agent Orange to the US whose military used millions of tons of the toxic chemical in the Vietnam War. Lawyers for the plaintiff and NGOs have hailed the trial in France as potentially “historic” as a guilty verdict would be the first time a Vietnamese civilian was deemed a victim of the defoliant, which contains harmful dioxins.
President Joe Biden is poised to issue executive actions as soon as Tuesday scaling back the use of private prisons and placing new limits on the transfer of military equipment to local law enforcement, according to a person familiar with the matter and a planning document.
Google employees from across the globe are forming a union alliance, weeks after workers at the search engine giant and other units of parent company Alphabet formed a labor union for U.S. and Canadian offices.
New York bill would decriminalize sex work while punishing pimps and buyers. New York state lawmakers are considering legislation that would seek to protect survivors of sex trafficking while punishing the people who exploit them. The bill, which is based on the so-called "Nordic model" of prostitution legislation, would also expand access to various services and resources, including mental health counseling, educational opportunities, housing services and economic empowerment tools for people in prostitution.
Movie star Keira Knightley says she won't act in any more sex scenes directed by men. "It's partly vanity and also it's the male gaze.”...That doesn’t mean she’ll never do a nude or sex scene again, Knightley clarified, just that she won’t do one with a male director or in scenes where she would be the subject of the “male gaze.” The feminist term describes depictions of women and the broader world from a masculine, heterosexual perspective, often as sexual objects for the pleasure of a cis, straight man watching.
Scientists found a 34-year-old grizzly bear in southwest Wyoming, identifying him by a mark on his lip made by biologists in 1989. That’s the oldest grizzly ever known in the Yellowstone region that includes parts of Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. Respect your elders.
Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.
Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.
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